McCaskill to skip Democratic National Convention

Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, one of the most vulnerable Democrats up for re-election in 2012, says she will skip the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C.

McCaskill's campaign says she will spend the week campaigning in Missouri instead. She joins a growing list of Democrats in conservative districts who have decided to avoid the convention, which will be a showcase of President Barack Obama's re-election campaign.

McCaskill's absence is notable because she played an early and prominent role in Obama's 2008 campaign, endorsing him during that primary with then Sen. Hillary Clinton.

McCaskill attended the 2008 convention, though she was not up for reelection. McCaskill has previously skipped her party's convention in years she is on the ballot, including in 2004 when she ran for governor.